Photo not related to article. [Getty Images Bank]
Photo not related to article. [Getty Images Bank]

A woman is seeking legal advice on how to reclaim her dog after her husband had an affair with the animal's trainer and took the pet with him when he left.

On Tuesday, a listener identified only as A contacted YTN Radio's "Jo In-seop's Legal Consultation" to ask how she could get back her 10-year-old dog, Kongi, explaining that she had first met her husband while volunteering at an animal shelter.

A had adopted Kongi from the shelter before the marriage. The dog had an anxious temperament and severe separation anxiety, so A enrolled it in a behavioral correction class. Because her husband finished work earlier, he was the one who usually took Kongi to the sessions.

A later discovered that her husband was having an affair with the trainer.

When A, furious, told him to leave the house, he took Kongi and moved in with the trainer. A then learned that the trainer had let go of Kongi's leash during a walk, and the dog was struck by a car and required leg surgery.

A said she had adopted Kongi herself and that the animal registration was in her name, and insisted she should be the one to raise the dog.

Her husband pushed back, saying he had also cared for Kongi for a long time and that he had paid most of the veterinary and food costs, and therefore should keep the dog.

"I know my husband cares about Kongi, but I cannot accept a situation where the dog is being raised alongside the woman he cheated with," A said. "Getting Kongi back is more urgent to me right now than the divorce. I want to know if there is any way to bring the dog home."

Attorney Lee Hyeon-ho of Shinsegae Law said that having an animal registered in one's name does not automatically make that person the sole owner. "The animal registration system exists to protect animals — it is not a system that publicly establishes or determines ownership," Lee said.

Lee said ownership is determined by considering the circumstances of adoption and the actual caregiving history. "If A can prove that she adopted Kongi alone before the marriage and bore the related costs herself, she would have grounds to claim sole ownership," Lee added.

Lee also said that if sole ownership is recognized, A could demand the husband return Kongi, but cautioned that under civil law, animals are treated as property. "Legal rights equivalent to parental custody, guardianship, or visitation — as applied to children — are not recognized in divorce proceedings," Lee said.

Lee went on to say that if Kongi is deemed jointly owned by the couple, the question of who keeps the dog would be settled through the asset division process. "The most practical approach would be for one party to take ownership of Kongi and compensate the other for the dog's assessed value," Lee advised.

Lee also advised that A could seek compensation for the accident caused by the trainer's negligence — covering both the financial loss from surgery costs and emotional damages stemming from Kongi's injury. "If A can also prove that the husband engaged in misconduct before the marriage broke down, she can file for consolation damages against both the husband and the other woman," Lee said.


yeonjoo7@heraldcorp.com